Phage Therapy an Effective Remedy Against Drug-Resistant Bugs and Hard to Treat Bacterial Infections-A Review

Abstract

The injudicious use of antibiotics not only in medicine but also to promote the growth of farm animals has led to the development of antibiotic resistance against many bacterial diseases. One of the remedy against such drug resistant bacterial infections is the application of phage (Bacteriophage) therapy. Phage therapy involves using phages or their products as bioagents for the treatment or prophylaxis of bacterial infections. There are two types of phages based on their type of life cycle: the lytic and the lysogenic phages. Only the lytic phages are used in phage therapy, because of the disadvantages of lysogenic pahges (Superinfection immunity, lysogenic conversion, specialized transduction). Apart from live phages the phage byproducts like phage lysins can also be used specifically against certain bacterial infections. The reports indicate that appropriate administration of living phages can be used to treat lethal infectious diseases caused by bacteria, like Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Salmonella spp. and Staphylococcus aureus etc. In the coming time the phage therapy will compensate for unavoidable complications of antimicrobial therapy, particularly the appearance of multidrug resistance bacteria (super bugs).